Women’s History Month has now passed, but women’s history and being aware of what has and has not changed for women in the past century is always relevant.
The first wave of feminism arose during the abolitionist movement when women declared their desire to participate in the political sphere. This later led to the emergence of the women’s suffrage movement as well as the anti-suffragist movement. Women who supported suffrage were met with constant disrespect and aggression. In A Squelcher for Woman Suffrage, a political cartoon by CJ Taylor, a woman is being denied the opportunity to vote because the dress she wore was too wide to fit into the narrow voting booths.
Anti-suffragists made use of the Biblical argument that celebrated ideal womanhood as submission, piety, and domestic virtue in an attempt to dismantle the movement. Anti-suffragists failed to recognize that suffragists simply wanted to have a choice and did not encourage the judgment of women who chose to remain in the home. But some women were stubborn and indoctrinated to believe they did not have the mental capacity for activities outside the domestic sphere. Many believed that a shift in the social order would spark the downfall of society and destruction of the family. Despite these notions, feminists continued with their heads held high, and undeterred by the backlash, suffragists pushed forward and secured the right to vote in 1920.
Over the years there have been powerful efforts contributing to the feminist movement. One began in the 2010s with the #MeToo movement, which went viral on social media. It is a survivor-led movement against sexual violence that creates pathways for healing and justice, and serves as a reminder that victims are not alone. Social media has been a useful tool for raising awareness about social issues and injustices to people of all ages around the world. This has opened people’s minds and helped them reach clarity about things they were previously uninformed about, including feminist principles.
Women have achievements such as women’s suffrage, the ability to pursue a higher education, the commercially produced birth control pill, the Equal Pay Act, and many more. Women have shown time and time again that the feminist movement is not a lost cause and is a force capable of bringing change.
The U.S. has not gone far enough on gender equality. Many women both at home and in the workforce still face some of the same issues. In The Future of Women’s Rights by the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence, it is explained, “physical abuse levels remain high, discrimination in the workplace, medical gaslighting, and unequal pay are just a few of the difficulties women face that have yet to be solved.”
The Pew Research Center conducted a survey in 2020 and found that 77% of all adults described sexual harassment as being a major obstacle to gender equality. A major setback for gender equality happened recently in June 2022 with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which allowed a pregnant person to decide whether to continue or end a pregnancy in the US. In response, many people came together to protest, showing their disapproval and their intent to make a change. Although abortion is largely recognized as a women’s issue, the right to an abortion extends to transgender and non-binary people who are also capable of pregnancy. Denying the existence of trans and non-binary people and their ability to conceive takes away from what is trying to be accomplished, which is the right to seek an abortion. Negative attitudes towards the movement cannot deny or discount all that has been gained and accomplished.
The Pew Research Center has been a great source of information on changing perspectives towards feminism. They conducted a series of surveys in 2020 around the topic and found that 61% of U.S. women say “feminist? describes them well, and many see feminism as empowering, 57% of all adults believe that the country has not gone far enough on gender equality, and 76% of all adults agree that gains in women’s rights have not come at the expense of men.
It is evident that views on feminism over the last century has impacted American society. Although, it has been hard to escape the confines of traditional gender roles and oppressive societal expectations, the feminist movement has adapted and navigated around barriers. Women all over the world have demonstrated that the will of a feminist does not die. It per
